One of the two bombs mailed from Yemen and found on cargo jets in Dubai and Britain travelled on two passenger jets in the Middle East, according to a spokesman for Qatar Airways.

The airline spokesman said a package containing explosives hidden in a printer cartridge arrived in Qatar Airways' hub in Doha, on one of the carrier's flights from the Yemeni capital Sana'a.

It was then shipped on a separate Qatar Airways plane to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, where it was discovered by authorities late early on Friday. A second, similar package turned up in England's East Midlands Airport.

Barack Obama's counter-terrorism adviser said the parcel bombs had been made by the same person as the device worn by the so-called "underpants bomber" who botched an attack over Detroit on Christmas Day 2009.